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June 28, 2011

Google Swiffy converts Flash to HTML5

Interesting: Google’s Swiffy project “converts Flash SWF files to HTML5, allowing you to reuse Flash content on devices without a Flash player (such as iPhones and iPads).” The gallery includes some ads & simple games. According to the FAQ,

How is Swiffy different than Wallaby?

Wallaby is an installable tool that converts .fla files, whereas Swiffy is a web-based tool that converts .swf files. Wallaby focuses on reusing parts of a Flash file in HTML, and thus produces code that can be edited by the developer, whereas Swiffy generates an efficient format that is not that easily editable.

What does Adobe think of Swiffy?

Adobe is pleased to see the Flash platform extended to devices which don’t support the Flash player. The result is that anyone creating rich or interactive ads can continue to get all the authoring benefits of Flash Pro and have the flexibility to run the ad in the Flash Player or HTML depending on what’s available on the system. Google and Adobe look forward to close collaboration around efforts like these.

The whole point of what we do remains, as always, solving customer problems; specific formats & runtimes are just means to that end. Onward.

It supports some of the features from Flash 8, but Google recommends exporting content in Flash 5 (which even then it doesn’t support fully). This means we are looking at Flash content made around 10 years ago. Unless you are considering banner ads which are often simple animations.

I just mention this as I think it’s important that people don’t mistake this or Wallaby as a magic bullet that will convert all Flash content. As I do see some people making that mistake.

I hate IE — 9:28 PM on June 28, 2011

Pity – IE doesn’t support Swiffy output – webkit browsers only.

Bill Brown — 9:54 AM on June 29, 2011

Typography is an issue. Not sure how many designers are going to appreciate the fact that their fonts are not getting converted properly.

I can see how the HTML5 version keeps file size down when font assets are lost in the conversion.

Don’t forget Jangaroo – that one compiles Actionscript 3.0 (but not .fla) down to a combination of the DOM, Canvas and Javascript.

I was really hoping Adobe would make a full on Flash IDE to HTML5 compiler (using a combination of the best techniques found in Wallaby, Janagroo and Swiffy). Maybe one day.

Each of the three tackle the problem in pretty radically different ways though, which is pretty fun to watch. I imagine Swiffy will be the most useful for banner ad producers, since (unlike Wallaby) it supports scripting.

Swiffy for iOS, and Flash for all others. The dream right there.

(Granted, certain features will always be missing from the HTML5 target – but still!).